"Erica"

          Traffic was backed up on James Street.  "It's because of the Angel!", Erica thought.  She  made the sign of the cross, kissing her trembling fingers afterward, and began to softly recite the rosary.  "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus...".  Erica had been praying for a sign from heaven, and God had answered in the cry of a baby and on the wings of an Angel! 

          Erica walked down James Street, towards downtown Syracuse, leaving Bessie Hudson Davis' house and her first meeting attending the Book Woman Club.  The group reviewed a poem from the book called, I am the Darker Brother, a collection of poems about the Harlem Renaissance.  Although Erica had not said a word, reading the poem over and over again from her borrowed copy of the book, it had been an amazing experience to be among so many learned women.
          It was a beautiful day!  The sun was shining in a blue sky that was so often gray and full of clouds.  Syracuse's weather had multiple personalities, and from hour to hour you didn't know what you were going to get.  Snow in the morning and 90 degree heat in the afternoon!  Thunderstorms in the afternoon and a blizzard in the evening!  You just never knew!  So as Erica walked, she enjoyed the heat and the calming pace of a kid-free day!  Besides, she knew that she couldn't call her husband, Pedro, married as he was to the Saturday afternoon sports games on T.V.!  She was lucky that he had agreed to watch the kids, so that she could attend her "hen-party"!
          Erica walked home alone.  Carmen was supposed to give her a ride.  Carmen, her best friend, had not shown up at the book club meeting, despite the fact that it was Carmen who had invited Erica to join the Book Woman Club in the first place!  Carmen had been pressuring Erica for months to join the club, insistent that Erica get out of the house, away from the kids, away from Pedro.  She had told Erica that she would meet her at Bessie Hudson Davis's house and had given her directions.  Pedro had piled the kids in the car, and had given her a ride to the club meeting, not even saying good-bye as he gunned the car to show his irritation as he drove off!   Erica was there on time, but Carmen never showed.  She would have some words for Carmen when next time she saw her!  
          At first, it was hard for Erica to be at a stranger's house, to be in Miss Bessie's house, not knowing her or anyone else at the meeting.  Erica was shy, and didn't know how to do that small talk "thang"!  But Miss Bessie had made Erica feel right at home, giving her welcoming wink and smile.  It was a greeting that reminded Erica of her deceased mother's loving adoption of strangers, who became family in the matter of moments.   Oh how she missed her mother!  ....But she didn't miss the drudgery of being house bound!  It had been a beautiful day!  No diapers to change, no messes to clean up, no fussing from Pedro!
          Erica quickened her pace, not wanting to anger Pedro by taking too much time in getting home!  She told him that she would be home by 3:30, but the banana pudding the women served at the end of the Book Woman Club meeting was so good, that she couldn't resist slowly savoring a second helping!  She was running late, and nervously chewed the inside of her left cheek, feeling the sharp taste of blood invading her mouth.
          Up ahead, Erica noticed one of the young women from the Book Woman Club, (was Kaditra her name?), arguing with another young lady from the club named Thunderbird, as they stood at the corner of Teal and James.   Thunderbird!   Erica remembered her name clearly!  (What an odd name...and no last name!)  Erica slowed down, not wanting to run into their argument.  She lived on Teal and would have to walk past their confrontation.  She watched as....Kalina?...put both hands on her hip and rolled her head in obvious anger! 
          And then,... Erica heard the baby, it's cries pain-filled and coated with desperation!  Erica turned around, looking back down the length of James Street that she had traveled, trying to find out where the crying baby's disturbing howls were coming from.  "Where are you?", Erica frantically shouted down the street.  "What are they doing to you?"  The baby's wailing suddenly stopped; the abrupt silence eerie as it spread out between the rushing cars on the street.  An elderly woman who was watering the bright bouquet of flowers surrounding her house, held her watering can aloft in the air as she stopped to stare at Erica.  A jogger coming down the sidewalk behind Erica, paused as he ran in place and asked, "Are you alright, Miss?"  "Did you hear it...someone is hurting a baby!  Did you hear where the screams were coming from?"  Erica took a step towards the jogger, who took several backwards running steps away from her.  "Look, I didn't hear anything!  You need me to call somebody?"  The jogger's hand reached into the pocket of his running suit, pulling out a cell phone.   The older woman with the watering can approached Erica.  "What seems to be the matter, dear?  You're really scaring me!  Are you feeling OK?"  "You didn't hear the baby screaming?  Erica face was contorted with concern, her voice rising.  "I'm calling 911!"  The jogger's index finger moved towards the key pad on his phone.  "No! No...wait!"  Erica's mind flashed to Pedro and a picture of his angry face formed.  She knew that if the jogger called the police and Pedro had to come down and get her from the Justice Center, there would be hell to pay!  "I'm...I'm so sorry!" Erica pleaded with the jogger.  "It's just that I thought I heard something.  It's OK...OK?  It's been a long day, that's all!"  Erica turned to the woman and said, "I'm so sorry I scared you!  I got eight kids and one is just a baby!  I guess I was day dreaming and heard him in my head!"  "Yeah, sure!"  The jogger jogged past Erica, his face skeptical, but the phone now back in his pocket.  He kept turning around, watching Erica, as if he expected her to chase after him.  "Men!" The woman smiled a knowing smile at Erica.  "They don't know what it's like to be a mother and worry about them from the cradle to the grave!  I raised six of 'em myself."  Erica offered the woman a last apology and turned around to continue her journey downtown....and in that moment...Erica saw an Angel rising into the sky!  It had huge, white feathered-wings that glowed luminescent in the evening sun.  A halo of the most pure white light surrounded it's head, so bright, ...so bright, that Erica had to shade her eyes with her hands as she tracked its flight through the sky, northward, and then upward into the clouds and out of sight!

          "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the the hour of our death.  Amen."  Erica fell to her knees on the pavement.  How could she have ever considered murder?  The Angel shamed her.  "Forgive me father, for I have sinned..."  Erica fell on her face, knocking herself out on the hard concrete!  The jogger, still paranoid and periodically looking back, saw Erica fall.  He took his phone back out of his pocket, and called 911.